Southlake Carroll junior Quinn Ewers is the No. 1 quarterback recruit in the Class of 2022. Rockwall junior QB Braedyn Locke has nowhere near the number of offers as Ewers.
Maybe he should.
Locke and the Yellowjackets came back from an early 21-0 deficit and beat the previously unbeaten Dragons 44-42 on October 8.
The staff at Elite Football Network was present at Rockwall to watch Locke and company pull off the dramatic upset.
The 6-foot-3-inch Ewers led the Dragons to scoring drives on each of their first four possessions. The Texas commit would finish the game with 326 yards passing and three touchdowns.
The big surprise was on the other end where the 6-0 Locke would rally Rockwall late in the first half with a pair of scoring drives to cut the Dragons lead to 28-19.
The momentum swung completely in favor of the home Yellowjackets as a Locke touchdown pass would give Rockwall a 34-27 lead with 5:16 remaining in the third quarter.
Ewers didn’t back down and led Southlake Carroll down the field on the ensuing drive. He would cap it himself with a nine-yard touchdown run.
Ultimately, it would not be enough as Ewers was intercepted by Rockwall’s Dariel Brown with 41 seconds to play.
Locke would finish with 352 yard passing, three touchdowns, and he also ran for another score. Rockwall put up 560 yards of total offense and handed Southlake Carroll its first non-district loss since 2017.
EFN Evaluation: Locke
Considering Ewers is the top 2022 quarterback recruit in the nation, Locke compares favorably. While he doesn’t have the prototypical size of an elite quarterback, size doesn’t always equate to wins.
Locke has many of the intangibles that FBS coaches around the country are searching for. He doesn’t make many mistakes. He’s very accurate with his throws and he can bail out of a bad play and turn it into a good one.
In the win over Southlake Carroll, it was as if Locke willed his team to come back. That’s the mark of a true champion and it’s why the Rockwall junior should start to see more Power 5 offers come his way.
EFN Evaluation: Ewers
Make no mistake. Quinn Ewers is an excellent quarterback. He is ranked No. 1 among 2022 quarterbacks in the Elite Football Network.
Despite the comeback by Rockwall, Ewers kept his poise and calmly led his team down the field in the third quarter to retake the lead.
When Rockwall took a 44-35 lead with just under three minutes to play, Ewers stepped up on the first play from scrimmage after the ensuing kickoff and tossed a 75-yard touchdown pass.
He has all the tools to become an early starter in his college career. Ewers will end up a three-year starter at one of the premier high school programs in the nation.
He has the arm strength to make any throw and could eventually find himself as an early round NFL draft pick.
One thing is certain. The Elite Football Network got to see two of the best high school quarterbacks in all of Texas.
